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Oct 1, 2012
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americans don't care as much in the polls about foreign policy. but several weeks later after this, i think it's very legitimate now that the press is going in and a couple of weeks have passed since the ambassador's death, now, yes. i mean, he's got a responsibility to talk about how badly the white house bungled this. >> i think he does. and indeed, you know, i think right now, the focus is a little misplaced. the notion that -- i think the white house is pretty credible in saying that they're learning more, that their initial instiblgt -- they didn't know the situation was initially, that they've explained it better as they've done intelligence assessments, but it raises the more fundamental question which is why was the consulate not secure? how was it that security issues, as opposed to their stories afterward, these are american lives at stake in an unstable region, what are the intelligence failures? what were the security failures? those are fundamental questions. >> there were intelligence failu failures, there were warnings, mark halperi
americans don't care as much in the polls about foreign policy. but several weeks later after this, i think it's very legitimate now that the press is going in and a couple of weeks have passed since the ambassador's death, now, yes. i mean, he's got a responsibility to talk about how badly the white house bungled this. >> i think he does. and indeed, you know, i think right now, the focus is a little misplaced. the notion that -- i think the white house is pretty credible in saying that...
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Sep 27, 2012
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. >> this is another case where some of the criticism of the president's foreign policy is that he doesot develop relationships wi these foreign leaders d it's clear inhis caseha hd t. also residual suspicion of general petraeus. i was there when general petraeus was still running iraq and barack obama was a candidate when he first went to iraq. and that relationship did not get off to a good footing. >> you owheinat gave vice president biden the lead for iraq policy. when it came to the big decisions, president obama had to get engaged. i found it string that during this whole negotiation over keeping troops in iraq,e talked by the secure deoconferences that they do. he talked to prime minister maliki twice. president obama, for him, iraq was a mh more importa priority rightly or wrongly and he was engaged on a weekly basis. i do think that had an eect on iri tihe was an extraordinary request that president obama made to the president of iraq to resign his position to make way for another person. it's hard to make that kind of request when you don't have an ongoing relationship with your
. >> this is another case where some of the criticism of the president's foreign policy is that he doesot develop relationships wi these foreign leaders d it's clear inhis caseha hd t. also residual suspicion of general petraeus. i was there when general petraeus was still running iraq and barack obama was a candidate when he first went to iraq. and that relationship did not get off to a good footing. >> you owheinat gave vice president biden the lead for iraq policy. when it came...
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Sep 27, 2012
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. >> to that point, michael, they've said that's one of their foreign policy victories. we ended the war in iraq yet at the same time there's so much iranian influence and so much suspicion of the shiite connection to iranians and the fact that iran used their airspace. do you think that this is a safe space for them to keep bragging about iraq or is iraq still a work in progress, very much a work in progress? >> well, what i tried to do in the book with general trainor was assess the administration in terms of what they themselves tried to do in iraq. they tried to do much more than just take the troops out. they tried to construct basically a coalition government, a partnership government in which power would be shared because there's a lot of concern that maliki is acting in a authoritarian way. they did try to negotiate an agreement to keep small force in iraq of 3,000 to 5,000. they did plan to have a substantial number of american police trainers. civilian presence to keep american influence in that part of the world. none of those things that they tried to do real
. >> to that point, michael, they've said that's one of their foreign policy victories. we ended the war in iraq yet at the same time there's so much iranian influence and so much suspicion of the shiite connection to iranians and the fact that iran used their airspace. do you think that this is a safe space for them to keep bragging about iraq or is iraq still a work in progress, very much a work in progress? >> well, what i tried to do in the book with general trainor was assess...
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Sep 28, 2012
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over the past three and a half years, a failed foreign policy, and it's just maddening. i know you probably can't say it on tv in the same way that i did but every conservative i talked to, they're just so frustrated. >> i think they're frustrated in part. this is the difference between clinton and frankly the last -- every republican nominee since reagan. i mean, reagan was a democrat and a tv star and movie star who got communicating. regular democrats get corporate meetings. i mean regular republicans. there is almost this republican consultant culture that says your job is to go raise money and i'll buy clever ads. as a result you don't get, i mean no president has been more vulnerable to an aggressive opponent than barack obama. for the reason you're saying. somebody who could just calm lane methodically -- >> you said something fascinating. you talked about a consultant culture, something that craig shirley and other, i call them true conservatives, true reagan conservatives, gingrich conservatives, people who grew the majority in the 1980s and '90s they believe th
over the past three and a half years, a failed foreign policy, and it's just maddening. i know you probably can't say it on tv in the same way that i did but every conservative i talked to, they're just so frustrated. >> i think they're frustrated in part. this is the difference between clinton and frankly the last -- every republican nominee since reagan. i mean, reagan was a democrat and a tv star and movie star who got communicating. regular democrats get corporate meetings. i mean...
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Oct 2, 2012
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bush overperformed, no foreign policy experience, he did very well. and the bush team outspun the gore people because they pushed their story line. and you went from, you know, minus five before the debate to plus a couple afterward and went on to win that disputed victory. but yes, romney can do it, he was a smart guy, good in most of the debates for the republicans. on the other hand, obama's pretty smart too and there's not much expectation to think he's going to screw up. >> what about, john, playing to that dull incompetent thing? he said in his convention speech. he said, look, i'm not going to heal the world, not going to part the seas, i want to help you and your family. the message being maybe i'm not as charismatic, i'm not a superstar the way many of you feel about this man, but i'm a businessman and i want to save you from what's happening to this economy. doesn't he play it down the middle that way? >> that's always been the whole card he's had. but he's got to project the idea that he is competent, he is fluent in creating jobs and expan
bush overperformed, no foreign policy experience, he did very well. and the bush team outspun the gore people because they pushed their story line. and you went from, you know, minus five before the debate to plus a couple afterward and went on to win that disputed victory. but yes, romney can do it, he was a smart guy, good in most of the debates for the republicans. on the other hand, obama's pretty smart too and there's not much expectation to think he's going to screw up. >> what...